Passenger seats and passenger seating environments aboard conveyances are commonly equipped with features designed to enhance passenger comfort. Regarding airliners, to which the inventive concepts disclosed herein find particular application, such features can include adjustable seats, ottomans, audio/video equipment, working/dining tables, lighting, etc. While significant effort has been directed to enhancing the aforementioned features, little effort been spent attempting to control the delivery of air and air temperature within the passenger seating environment, and particularly air and temperature control for each individual passenger.
Air delivery and temperature control aboard airliners has been conventionally limited to adjustable nozzles positioned overhead, and electric heaters incorporated into the seating surfaces. While overhead nozzles are able to control the flow of air directed to a passenger, they disadvantageously affect surrounding passengers and are not able to control the temperature of the delivered air. While electric heaters are able to control the surface temperature of a seat surface, they are slow to react to temperature change requests and are unable to cool the seat surface. Therefore, what is needed is a system capable of providing warm or cold air, on demand, and through a seating component in order to better regulate body temperature, sweating and anxiety, thus producing a more comfortable and enjoyable flight for passengers.